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The SB.TV founder is passionate about showing young people that there are many ways they can reach their potential – and he believes apprenticeships are one of the best paths available
Getting my MBE for my work in music and business in 2014 was a nuts day. I received it alongside Joan Collins, who was being made a Dame, and at the end of the day, I looked at my mum, dad and sister, and was like: “Well look at that, Jamal is with Dame Joan Collins!” It was so surreal.
Looking back on when I was starting out, my parents definitely struggled with the fact that I wasn’t going to uni, instead choosing to focus on making my music video platform, SB.TV, work. I was doing a BTec in media and moving image, but I really wanted to be out filming for SB.TV – the more I did, the more fire I had to continue. In the end, I made a deal with my parents: if I completed my diploma, they’d let me concentrate on my passion. They agreed, so I put my head down and got it done. Today, SB.TV is a full-blown entertainment company, but when I said I was getting into YouTube to start it, the response was mainly: “Uh, right …” as it had only been around for a year when I signed up in 2006. Even when it started to become more successful there was still a feeling among some people that it wasn’t going to work out and that I needed to get a “proper job”. Continue reading...